


Lights Out

by Pariscores



Series: Pariscores' StarkBucks Bingo 2020 [4]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Horror, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Demons, Established Relationship, Lights Out AU, M/M, Monsters, Nightmares, Or just unspecified creatures, Tony Stark Has Nightmares, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:26:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,713
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27300418
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pariscores/pseuds/Pariscores
Summary: “You okay?” James asks quietly, slowly. As if Tony were made of something brittle, ready to break at any moment. And Tony can’t help but feel like he is.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark
Series: Pariscores' StarkBucks Bingo 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1761820
Kudos: 27
Collections: StarkBucksBingo2020





	Lights Out

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Starkbucks Bingo!
> 
> Square Filled: G1 - Horror Movie AU  
> Ship/Main Pairing: Winteriron  
> Major Tags & Triggers: Lights Out AU, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Nightmares  
> Word Count: 1,713
> 
> I also finished this just in time for Halloween!

Tony has always been afraid of the dark.

Or rather, he was afraid of what was  _ in  _ the dark. What he couldn’t see.

It was a fear of the unknown, really. Of what unknown could manifest in the dark.

_ He remembers being 6 and crying for Jarvis after his father had taken the nightlight out of the socket in his room because ‘there is nothing you should be afraid of Anthony. Stark men are made of iron. There is no need to show weakness.’ _

_ The only light that had shone into his room came from the window where the moon reflected shadows of tree branches inside his room. The light only vaguely illuminates his bed. The rest was shrouded in darkness. _

_ He is still sniffling quietly when he hears a loud squeak. Tony immediately turns towards his bedroom door, hoping that it was Jarvis coming to comfort him, or his mother checking to see if he was sleeping as she usually does. _

_ Yet when he spots the door, it remains firmly shut. Untouched. The squeaking persists, and Tony swallows thickly and turns towards the only other possible source in which the noise could come from. Right there, the closet door that Jarvis had closed when he had tucked Tony in bed earlier that evening, had inched its way open. Tony quickly pulls the covers closer as a new wave of fear floods him. He can barely make out the closet because of the dim lighting, yet there it remains. _

_ Minutes pass and the closet door remains the way it is. It’s not as reassuring as he would like it to be, but Tony forces himself to relax nonetheless.  _

_ He knows, logically, that the reason for it opening in the first place was because Jarvis hadn’t shut it all the way. That Jarvis had just forgotten to ensure that the closet was firmly closed. _

_ He chooses not to think about the fact that Jarvis hasn’t forgotten before. _

_ That Jarvis never forgets.  _

_ Tony tries to shake off the feeling of dread that builds up inside of him and slowly braces himself against his headboard and counts to ten. _

_ One. _

_ The room is silent again, only the sound of his own ragged breathing making itself known. _

_ Two. _

_ The light is still creating shadows. _

_ Three. _

_ One of the tree branches barely scrapes against his window. _

_ Four. _

_ The sheets feel rough against his skin. _

_ Five. _

_ The closet door remains slightly ajar. _

_ Six. _

_ His breathing starts to calm, no longer leaving him gasping. _

_ Seven. _

_ The bedroom door remains shut. _

_ Eight. _

_ His shoulders relax from their stiff position. _

_ Nine. _

_ His eyes start drifting closed. _

_ Ten. _

_ The creaking sound begins again. _

_ Tony holds his breath as his eyes shoot open again. His gaze locks onto his closet in anticipation.  _

_ There’s nothing there. No sound. No light. Just… nothing. _

_ He shuts his eyes tightly, silently begging for Jarvis to come back. For  _ someone _ to come back. _

_ The creaking continues, only this time it is accompanied by a low hissing sound. Fear fuels Tony as he jumps and rips his covers off.  _

_ The hissing only gets louder, and Tony scrambles off the bed, backing away from the closet. He keeps backing away until he has nowhere else to go. Until his back hits the wall. _

_ The sound doesn’t stop, and Tony desperately wants to get away.  _

_ But all he can do is stare at the closet door as he flattens himself against the wall, listening to the hissing sound that only gets louder until it seems to echo throughout the room. _

_ Tony’s breathing gets faster and faster and he knows that he has to calm down but he just can’t and he can’t breathe and he’s terrified and- _

_ The hissing stops. _

_ But that doesn’t mean it’s over. _

_ As soon as the sound stops, a grotesque hand reaches out of the closet, its fingers gripping the door as claws graze the back of it, scratching away the paint in thin streaks. _

_ The moonlight is shining less bright as clouds overhead start to block the light, drowning the room in darkness, each time longer than the last. _

_ And then, the light that was spilling into the room disappears, and Tony is left with nothing but darkness and the shrill sound of the closet door opening once more. _

_ In a flit of desperation, Tony starts running towards his bedroom door. It’s his chance to escape. To run away and find Jarvis, or his mom, or anyone- _

_ Just as the moonlight streams into the room once more, he runs past the closet. _

_ The hand reached out and wrapped itself around his ankle. _

_ Tony trips and lands on his stomach, tears filling his eyes as he turns his head back to look behind him. There is just enough light in the room to make out the gangly figure. One that smiles something sinister at him with sharp teeth and black eyes.  _

_ He cries out as he is dragged into the darkness of his own closet. _

“Tony.  _ Tony.” _ A deep voice rumbles in an attempt to rouse him. “Wake up.” He can feel something cool rubbing his arm. Tony wakes abruptly, his eyes still shut, and his throat raw, and  _ was he still screaming? _

“Tony? Come on Doll, you’re okay,” the same voice whispers, laced with concern. “It was just a dream.”

Tony’s eyes snap open as he rips the sheets off of himself and scrambles off the bed. He doesn’t feel himself hit the floor, the only instinct he has is  _ to get away far away- _

He continues to back himself into a corner, tears running down his face and he huddles into himself, hugging his legs into his chest and burying his head in his knees. 

Tony can hear the soft padding on the floor as something draws closer to him, and he can’t help but tighten his grip on his legs, hoping to make himself smaller.

“Tony?” They’re in front of him now, and Tony flinches hard.

_ “Please don’t. No, no, please-” _

“Hey, it’s okay. You’re okay. But I need you to breathe, okay? Just take a deep breath with me,” The voice rumbles from beside him. It is deep, and oh so familiar and-

_ James. _

Almost instantly the tension leaves Tony’s body as he slowly relaxes. He lifts his head slightly until his eyes meet the steel blue of James’. 

“You okay?” James asks quietly,  _ slowly. _ As if Tony were made of something brittle, ready to break at any moment. And Tony can’t help but feel like he is.

He clears his throat and fully uncurls from his position cramped in the corner. “I-yeah. Yeah, it was just a bad dream. Just-” His voice cracks as Tony forces himself to look away from James’ piercing gaze, which is still watching him intently.

After a few moments, James scoots closer and places his arms around Tony, pulling the shorter man against him. He rests his chin atop Tony’s head and asks, “do you want to talk about it?”

“No, I just-maybe...” Tony sighs, burying his face in the warmth of James’ chest.

James runs his fingers delicately down his spine. “Whenever you’re ready, I’ll be here to listen.” Tony leans back and tilts his head to look at James. He had an encouraging smile on his face, and the adoring look in his eyes had the words tumbling out of his mouth before he could stop them.

“You promise you won't laugh?”

“If it scares you, then it’s serious to me,” James speaks earnestly and his eyes never leave Tony’s.

“When I was younger, I was afraid of a monster in my closet. It always appeared when I was alone in the dark, and I thought it was real. I swear I saw it,  _ felt it  _ even _. _ But I never told anyone, not Jarvis, my Mom, and  _ especially  _ not Howard…” James takes a hold of Tony’s hand and lightly caresses his thumb across it. “It sounds stupid, I know-”

“It’s not,” James interrupts, as he lets go of Tony’s hand in order to tilt his chin up so their eyes meet. “That monster may not be real, but your fear is. You’re not stupid for being afraid.”

Overwhelmed with emotion, (because  _ fuck when was the last time someone had actually bothered to  _ listen  _ to Tony’s childhood demons and not dismiss them entirely?)  _ Tony leans in and kisses James, trying to express every ounce of gratitude that Tony can’t express now into the action. 

Soon they pull apart and James leans his forehead against Tony’s. “Do you wanna try to get some more sleep?” He feels Tony tense up, and James reaches to squeeze his hand gently. “I’ll be with you the entire time. Nothing will hurt you, I  _ promise.” _

Tony glances down at his hand which is clasped in James’ grip before meeting his eyes once more with a steady nod. “You won't leave?” As much as Tony hates this moment of weakness, he wants- _ needs  _ James’ reassurance that he won’t go. That he’ll  _ stay. _

“I would never even think of it,” James responds, pressing a light kiss on the crown of Tony’s head before pushing himself to stand. He reaches down to help Tony up, and then gently guides the shorter man back to the bed. Tony slips back onto the bed and James crawls in behind him, grabbing the discarded sheets to pull back over the two of them. Without any prompting, JARVIS dims the lights until they are turned off completely.

James reaches towards Tony and pulls him closer so that his back is flush against James’ chest. “You’re good?”

Tony scans the room around them before his gaze settles on the closet door in front of him. It’s slightly ajar, yet Tony can’t make out any movement from inside. There’s nothing there, which makes the last shred of tension he was holding onto disappear. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m good.”

James hums. “Okay. I love you.”

“I love you too,” Tony responds, a soft smile on his face. “Night.”

“Goodnight, Doll.”

After a few minutes, Tony hears James’ breathing even out and he knows that he’s not that far behind. With a yawn, Tony lets his eyes close.

The last thing he sees before he succumbs to sleep is the closet door shut slowly.

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on Tumblr @[pariscores](pariscores.tumblr.com)
> 
> Happy Halloween!


End file.
